Rain hit hard earlier this week and drenched the county once again.Wheat is in grain fill to soft dough. Corn is growing well but may be experiencing some nitrogen deficiencies in low areas.
According to the National Weather Service, some places in Hill and McLennan Counties got over 6″ of rain from the storm that hit Tuesday night and rained into Wednesday. This excess rain will affect the pest populations and nitrogen management this year, but how much remains to be seen. Hopefully we can dry out a little, but rain is predicted to come both this weekend and next weekend as well.
Some fields may be experiencing damage from fall armyworm, but populations will vary greatly by location. We also still have a huge abundance of natural enemies that could be helping keep them in check, as well as the scattered aphid populations. Ladybugs, lacewings, and spiders can be found readily in most fields and will hopefully persist to aid us in other crops.
Wheat Leaf rust continues to spread in most fields, but wheat is past the flowering stage and is less vulnerable to yield losses. In fields that were not treated at Feekes 10, pockets of rust can be seen covering the flag leaves. All species of stinkbugs can be found feeding occasionally on wheat heads. Seeing a few is not a cause for alarm, and generally they do not reach threshold levels.
